Page 40 of Wild Fated

Chapter

Eighteen

Destin

My house.We were staring at it when it had taken us days to come this far into the mountains. I took a step forward, and the ground seemed to pulse beneath my feet. I stumbled, catching myself on a nearby tree. "What the hell?"

Lana gaped. "Did the ground just move?"

I shook my head, trying to clear the fog. "Felt like it." I took another step, and this time, it was like the world morphed to meet me. I jolted again, but that time I was ready for it.

Lana put out her arms to keep her balance, then stepped up next to me. "It's like we're on a moving sidewalk."

I frowned. "A what?"

"You know, those things in airports? You stand on them, and they move you along?"

I shook my head. "Never been in an airport."

Lana blinked. "Seriously? Never?"

I didn't answer. I didn't need to.

Lana cleared her throat. "Okay, well, it's like that. But without the actual moving part." She took another step, and this time she didn't stumble.

“Makes perfect sense.”

Lana elbowed me in the ribs. We took a step together. The ground seemed to stretch beneath us, like it was eager to carry us forward. It was disorienting but also exhilarating. In seconds we stood in front of my cabin, staring at the stacked wood pile.

I opened my mouth to say something, but she beat me to it. "We can go anywhere like this.” She snapped her fingers. “We have to find Rowan and the others." Before I could argue, she grabbed my hand and started running.

"I still can’t shift,” she muttered as the world spun around us.

I’d already tried when that wolf had appeared. My wolf was aching to stretch his legs. We’d only been trapped here for what, thirty-six hours? It already felt like an eternity. Especially after last night . . .

My head swam with images. Flashes of Lana’s skin, the memory of her breath. I wanted to drag her to a stop and have a repeat, but Lana was singularly focused on her friends.

I understood. Since we couldn’t reach our packs, she hadn’t been able to communicate with them. But verbal communication was the last thing on my mind right then.

Lana slowed, and I took in our surroundings as they settled. Power lines. Houses. We were standing in the middle of a road.

“This is Black Lake,” she said. “Cmon.”

We took a step, and we were in the town square. “Do you think they’ll be here?”

“I have no idea,” she murmured. Lana clenched her jaw, and my ribs cinched. She put on such a strong face, but I knew what was happening under the surface. She was nervous. Scared. Unsteady. I was the only one who knew those particular secrets, and it blew oxygen over the coals that were still simmering.

I felt everyone’s emotions. This was nothing new. So why did it seem to matter so much that I felt hers?

Lana stopped next to what looked like a mechanic shop. She hesitated, then took one more step. I followed, and we passed through the walls.

“That’s Tori, Mara, and Jasper,” Lana whispered, though I was sure she could’ve shouted and it wouldn’t have made a difference. The three shifters were in a tense conversation, and nothing we did seemed to impact the real world.

“You’re sure?” Tori asked, her tone sharp.

Mara nodded, arms crossed over her chest. “Word came down from Blue Mountain. Shrikes were spotted just north of the river.”

Jasper muttered a curse under his breath. “How close?”

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